Dunfermline made sure of their place in the top six with a comprehensive victory over bottom of the table Motherwell.

Jimmy Calderwood's men swept the Steelmen aside in the first half, owing much to the inspired form of veteran striker Craig Brewster.

Motherwell find themselves still rooted to the bottom of the table - although they have a game in hand over Dundee United - and they will be nervously watching for the outcome of next weekend's Division One title clash between Falkirk and St Johnstone.

A first-half strike from Steven Hampshire was enough to give the Pars the lead at half-time, but they soon followed that up with a goal from Barry Nicholson after some great link-up play from Brewster.

Republic of Ireland Under-21 striker Noel Hunt added the final goal with 13 minutes left when he delightfully blasted the ball past Francois Dubourdeau after a spot of keepie-up 20-yards from goal.

Motherwell were once again reduced to 10 men after 33 minutes when Tony Vaughan pulled back Brewster as he broke through on goal.

This effectively killed the game as a contest and made sure the Pars could spend the remainder of the match probing their opponents and taking full advantage of their one-man advantage.

The Pars had Motherwell on the back foot for much of the opening exchanges and created an opportunity to take the lead after only four minutes.

Brewster gathered the ball 20-yards from goal and, using his body to shield it from a Well defender, he managed to find space on the edge of the box.

The veteran striker steadied himself and tried to send a curling shot beyond Dubourdeau, but his effort flew inches wide.

The home side took the lead after 18 minutes and, as ever, Brewster was at the heart of the action.

The veteran striker used all his experience to lean into Martyn Corrigan as a Sean Kilgannon cross flew into the box.

This allowed him to get some space inside the area and he tried to hit the ball on the turn, but he saw his effort blocked by Dubourdeau.

Unfortunately for the Well keeper the ball broke straight to Hampshire, who had the easiest of tasks in knocking the ball home into an empty net.

The visitors, to their credit, continued to attack and were almost rewarded three minutes later when a Dirk Lehmann cross hit David Grondin on the goalline but somehow stayed out.

Motherwell claimed for a foul, insisting that James McFadden had been impeded as he went into a challenge with the former Arsenal man, but the referee was unimpressed and waved play on.

The game exploded into life in the 33rd minute when Motherwell almost equalised and then lost a man all in the space of 20 seconds.

At one end Keith Lasley hit the post with a speculative shot, only to see the ball sent high upfield for Brewster to chase.

The former Hibs striker had the beating of Vaughan for pace and was held back by the defender, prompting a furious reaction from the Pars players.

Somers sprinted to the scene and wasted no time in issuing the Well player with a deserved straight red card.

The Pars attacked from the outset in the second half and took only five minutes to double their lead.

Brewster seemed to be at the heart of all Dunfermline's good play and once again he opened up the Well defence with an intelligent flick.

Nicholson found himself on the end of his team-mate's pass and simply bolted in on goal before slamming the ball home.

Motherwell could have snatched a goal back mid-way through the second half when Steven Hammell picked out Derek Adams unmarked in the penalty area.

The former Ross County man had plenty of space and time to hit his shot, but weakly knocked the ball against Derek Stillie from seven yards.

Dunfermline continued to press and added a deserved third goal with 13 minutes remaining.

Hunt, a second-half substitute, fired himself into his manager's plans for Wednesday's Scottish Cup match with Rangers by scoring a goal of sublime quality.

The Irishman lifted the ball up with one foot 20-yards from goal and simply fired the ball into the net with the other.

Well goalkeeper Dubourdeau did not even move to try and save Hunt's effort, so bemused was he at the audacity of the shot and the reluctance of his team-mates to close the Pars striker down.

As the results from elsewhere filtered through, the Pars players learned that they were assured of a place in the top six when the league splits and this contributed to the swagger they had showed all afternoon.

Teams

Dunfermline: Stillie, Bullen (Hunt 66), MacPherson, Scott Wilson, Grondin, Nicholson, Mason, Brannan, Kilgannon, Brewster (Hamilton 71), Hampshire (McGroarty 83).

Subs Not Used: Ruitenbeek, McGarty.

Booked: Scott Wilson.

Goals: Hampshire 18, Nicholson 50, Hunt 77.

Motherwell: Dubourdeau, Corrigan, Vaughan, Partridge, Hammell, Cowan, Adams, Leitch (Craig 80), Lasley (Fagan 80), Lehmann, McFadden (Clarkson 73).

Subs Not Used: Woods, Kinniburgh.

Sent Off: Vaughan (37).

Booked: Leitch, Lasley.

Att: 4,086

Ref: D Somers (Scotland).